At the Ohio State University Medical Center, the iPod Touch is literally
what the doctor ordered.
The university announced this week that all students in the College of
Medicine would receive the devices, which the university plans to equip
with medical software.
Justin Harper, a third-year medical student credited with the idea of
distributing the wifi-enabled audio-and-video players, says the iPod
Touch will allow him to listen to lectures during his commute to school
and will put current medical information at his fingertips. He will be
able to pull up graphics, watch videos of medical procedures, and search
medical reference books. Perhaps more importantly, he says, he will be
able to answer patients’ questions more quickly and without leaving
their sides.
“It just makes [everything] faster,” he said. “We can have it there when
we need it.”
Other medical schools have also incorporated iPods or other portable
media players in their training. At Temple University, students use
iPods to listen to recordings of heart murmurs. At the University of
Michigan, students use “Dr. iPod,” a program that lets them review
lectures and patient presentations on their iPods. Ohio State
University, however, appears to be the first to give the devices away.
But judging from past giveaways, the concept is unlikely to spread to
other medical schools. A news analysis in The Chronicle in March
questioned the success of giveaway programs. —David DeBolt
http://chronicle.com/wiredcampus/index.php?id=3499&utm_source=wc&utm_medium=en
